The Word of God tells us plainly that believers are redeemed (set free) from the curse of sickness!  Why then are millions of us sick? Why have we been ill for years, why have we endured operations, why have we become addicted to drugs to get through the day?  Why aren’t the Promises of God working for us? 

The Lord led me to investigate why we claim to be “filled with the Holy Spirit” of God, but we live like mere men,completely powerless. Saints, there is something wrong with that! How on earth can we be “filled with Holy Spirit” and suffering just like the world? Where is the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives?  How have we disabled the force of God in our lives, in our bodies, and our circumstances?

The LORD said this, “I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you” (Luke 10:19, NLT).

We are God’s disciples and apostles. The Bible says, “Jesus called his twelve disciples together and gave them authority to cast out evil spirits and to heal every kind of disease and illness” (Matthew 10:1).  It is not as widespread as it should be, but churches all over the world have ordinary pastors, men, and women who are healing the sick, just as Christ’s first disciples and apostles did. 

Christ healed the sick, and his followers healed the sick.  We are carrying on Christ’s mandate. Why should any of us tolerate sickness in her body?

God said, “My people are being destroyed because they don’t know me. Since you priests refuse to know me, I refuse to recognize you as my priests. Since you have forgotten the laws of your God, I will forget to bless your children (Hosea 4:6, NLT).  Also translated, “My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6, NLT).

When I got saved, I asked God, “Why are so many people in the church sick?” He said, “They don’t know Me.” He was telling me that most of us know of Him as our Savior, but we don’t know Him as our Healer!

If you reread Hosea 4:6 above, God is saying His priests (pastors and teachers) don’t know Him!  Yes, we are holy, yes, we read the Bible, and yes, we teach the Bible. But does that mean that we knowJehovah-Rapha (The God Who Heals)? No, it doesn’t.

What specific knowledge of God is lacking?  Why are we allowing sickness, disease, and premature death to run rampant in our churches?

For the past four years, I have been asking God to help me understand this dilemma.  I will use my struggle and my failings to share with you how the Holy Spirit began to answer these questions for me and how he healed me.

I asked God outright, “Why am I sick?” I knew the natural reasons such as family history, diet, and overwork, but I wanted to know the spiritual reason.  The spiritual reason for sickness is the root of the problem. His response was quick. He said, “You are deceived.” I understood that to mean that I had allowed the lies of Satan to dominate (stamp out) the Word of God in my heart.

Satan has convinced many of us that –

1) There is nothing we can do about chronic illness.
2) We’ve done our best, but we’re just stuck with this condition.
3) That we (personally) are not holy enough to receive divine healing or a miracle.
4) Divine healing is too difficult to understand, so there’s no use trying.

ALL FOUR OF THESE ASSUMPTIONS ARE BALD FACED LIES! 

The truth is –
1) To be cured, there is more we can do.
2) We haven’t always done our best to defeat our illnesses.
3) We are not all destined to die sick! We can peacefully go to sleep and wake up in the glorious presence of Jesus. Some people die in their sleep without ever suffering illness.
4) Divine healing isn’t mysterious, it’s as simple as steadfastly using and acting on our faith.

A man of God told a story about a wonderful Christian woman who was very old and very sick. The woman was genuinely suffering. An anointed man of God came to her home to pray for her to receive divine healing.

However, the woman was tired.  She told him, “I’m ready to go. I don’t want to live.”

Knowing her family was worried, the man of God said, “Will you allow Jesus to heal you right now so that He will get glory from your life? Then if you want to, you can go to sleep and leave (let go and die). What do you think?” She replied, “OK.” After he prayed, she received her healing. Her family was delighted.  They praised God that she was relieved of her suffering. A short time afterward, she said goodbye to the family and died peacefully instead of dying in agony.

The moral of this story is this. We don’t have to suffer for years and die sick.  We can walk in divine health with joy and energy as we serve God’s people. Then, when we are ready, we can peacefully transition. S

ATAN CANNOT SNATCH OUR HEALTH AND OUR LIFE! The devil was defeated at Calvary; he no longer has any power unless we (innocently) relinquish our control.  Jesus has the power, not Satan, not sickness, and not death.  The Lord Jesus has given us power to overcome the devil and disease to us (Luke 10:19).

Why are Christians dying suddenly and in agony? In truth, every man has his own account with God. We don’t know why people died suddenly or why our prayers sometimes fail. Jesus healed all who came to him, but he didn’t heal in areas steeped in unbelief.

The Holy Spirit, the Bible, and respected Christian books cite twenty or more common reasons why Christians no longer walk in divine healing. Some of the major reasons people manifest lingering sickness include unbelief, unforgiveness and idolatry. Many people are in unbelief concerning the miracles of Christ because they have not heard this message preached.

In this brief writing, I will deal with obstacles that blocked my healing for four years. 

One main reason that mature believers and Christian leaders are suffering debilitating illnesses is that we’ve embraced lies that directly contradict the Word of God. This is idolatry. Unfortunately, in the Christian community, it has become socially acceptable to believe these lies and to defend them!

The Bible says, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32).  When I was sick, I asked myself and I asked God, “What is the truth that I need to know to be set free of this sickness?” I didn’t care if my medical advisors didn’t know the answer.  Jesus Christ is The Great Physician (Luke 4:23), and He knew the answer! 

I believe in miracles. What about you?

My Story

As mentioned above, just recently, I suffered from a chronic illness that lasted for four years. I went to many doctors and tried many treatments. Like the woman in Luke chapter eight, I often grew worse. 

In spite of this, I love my doctors. God has used them to save my life. For a time, they helped me to manage illnesses that they could not cure.  God has anointed doctors and partnered with them to comfort us and to heal some conditions.

However, there are conditions that medical science cannot cure.  Many of us will only be healed if we humble ourselves and diligently seek the power of Almighty God.

The disciples of Jesus were not able to heal a boy because they could not cast out the demon that troubled the child.

Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, “Why couldn’t we cast out that demon?” (Matthew 17:19, NLT). So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:10, NKJV).

Even today, Jesus can heal any hopeless case.  He cures the lame, He replaces limbs, and He restores both sight and hearing. He has not changed. Jesus is the same yesterday and today and forever (Hebrews 13:8, NIV).

A vast crowd brought to him people who were lame, blind, crippled, those who couldn’t speak, and many others. They laid them before Jesus, and he healed them all (Matthew 15:30, NLT).

I was healed. It was the Holy Spirit who healed me. My Father God started the process by telling me that deception was the root of my illness. In other words, I needed the spiritual truth to set me free (John 8:32). Step by step, the Holy Spirit guided my progressive healing. Without Holy Spirit guidance and revelation knowledge, I would never have known what to do. 

As long as I relied on my own intellect, I remained ill. As long as I did what I thought was prudent, I remained ill.  I was trapped – until I turned my whole heart to Jesus Christ and the Word of God.

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine” (Isaiah 55:8, NLT).

DIVINE HEALING WORKS!

However, divine healing is a spiritual process that defies the senses, it challenges the reasoning mind, it defies logic, and it defies the wisdom of men. Divine healing overshadows every false idol that sought to exalt itself over the knowledge of God in our lives.

While I was sick, I said I believed God’s healing promises, but if I had believed, understood, and acted on them, I would have been healed.

Here’s why I struggled with sickness for four long years.

1) UNBELIEF – I was reciting healing scriptures (mentally accenting) without truly believing it would work for me.
2) I COULD NOT SEE – I made no effort to see ( or visualize) myself healthy and well.  After being hospitalized and rushed to the ER many times, I saw myself ill instead of seeing myself well.  I accepted the illness, and I was tolerating it. I had consented to live with it. I believed in the power of the illness more than the power of Almighty God.
3) WRONG CONFESSION – Instead of consistently speaking the promises of God, I was repeating my medical diagnosis. I told doctors, family, and close friends that I had this condition. I lived in fear of getting ill, and I often complained about my aches and pains.
4) NO ACTION – The Word says, “Faith without action is dead” (James 2:17). All my actions were consistent with my unbelief. I accepted the illness and I stated my diagnosis to others with great confidence.  Since I believed I was sick, symptoms showed up faithfully to confirm my belief. I felt ill and behaved like a sick person.

What was the “deception” that kept me ill? In a nutshell, it was unbelief. What caused the unbelief? My unbelief was created by three factors.

1) LIES / DECEPTION
2) FEAR
3) PHYSICAL PAIN

As a result of exalting medical science over the Word of God, a door was opened in my life for deception and fear to take root. Soon, I realized that the spirit of fear is a lying and tormenting spirit. The evil spirit of fear is supported by physical pain and other verifiable symptoms. 

WHEN THE SPIRIT OF FEAR IS CAST OUT, SYMPTOMS AND PAIN OFTEN VANISH IMMEDIATELY!

Summary

In my humble opinion, thousands of mature Christians are living with chronic illness because of LIES, FEAR, and PAIN. This trio demolishes faith.  Divine healing relies on faith in Jesus – not trust in our feelings and intellect.

DO NOT TOLERATE SICKNESS.

Jesus approached a man who had been lame for thirty-eight years. When Jesus noticed him lying there [helpless], knowing that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, Do you want to become well? [Are you really in earnest about getting well?] (John 5:6, AMPC, bold added).

This man had been tolerating sickness for thirty-eight years! 

Afterward, when Jesus found him in the temple, He said to him, See, you are well! Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you (John 5:14, AMPC).

If you have been tolerating sickness for years, I want to encourage you. “For nothing is impossible with God” (Luke 1:37, NLT).  God heals by miracles and by progressive healings.  As Jesus asked the lame man, “Are you really in earnest about getting well?” If so, here are a few tips that will help you.

3 Steps To Begin Divine Healing

Unshakable Faith – We must know that God can and will heal us, even though natural treatments have failed.

Prayer – We should ask God’s Holy Spirit to reveal to us the reason we are sick.  We are forgiven and cleansed by the blood of Jesus.  Knowing the specific reason a sickness manifested helps us to stay well in the future.

Mind Renewal – We should study the healing ministry of Jesus in the Gospels.  Additionally, there are many excellent teachings on divine healing.  They are readily available in books and on audio and video.

If you find yourself in a medical crisis, one of the finest books ever written on divine healing is Christ the Healer by F.F. Bosworth. In the very least, read, listen to and recite healing scriptures. The healing scriptures alone have miraculous healing power for those who believe. In terms of independent study, read the life (and healing ministry) of Jesus in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Divine healing is ignited by faith in Jesus Christ and the Word of God.  It is accomplished through submission to the Holy Spirit.

It’s never too late!